May 20, 2006

G40: Red Sox 8, Phillies 4

Nice outing for Josh Beckett ... well, the first 28 batters. An error by JT Snow and an eight-pitch walk to Chase Utley opened the eighth inning and brought Ryan Howard to the plate. Tito should have pulled him there -- Julian Tavarez was warm.

Beckett stayed in and Howard hit a first-pitch, three-run home run. The 8-1 lead was 8-4.

Beckett had 91 pitches after seven innings and I wouldn't have minded him being pulled. If the Red Sox bullpen can't hold a 7-run lead with six outs to go, well ... And why not save some of those Beckett pitches for October?

Still, you could argue that Beckett was cruising and should have started the 8th. That's reasonable. But after the walk -- and at 105 pitches -- no. This is one of Francona's obvious faults (Gump had the same problem). And he can't use the excuse of a weak pen this season.

Fortunately, what could have been very ugly was not. Tavarez gave up two one-out singles, but got out of trouble and Mike Timlin threw a perfect ninth on nine pitches (all strikes).

Besides the pitching, Boston got some bizarre offense: Beckett hit a solo home run in the 7th (he also singled home a run in the sixth); Kevin Youkilis followed that with a triple; and Alex "The Pitcher" Gonzalez pounded a two-run shot to dead center in the 8th.

Jason Varitek did not hit a home run for the sixth consecutive May 20th.

Also: 714.

[Gordon Edes writes that David Wells's knee feels good and he expects to be pitching in Fenway against Tampa this Friday.]

9 comments:

allan said...

Red Sox down 1-2-3 again in the top of the fifth. One measly single in five innings. WTF? Is Myers dealing (only 54 pitches) or are the Sox bats AWOL?

allan said...

Looks like my post woke up the bats.

Sixth inning: 4 runs, 5 hits, 10 batters, 37 pitches for Myers.

Zenslinger said...

Beckett: RBI single, scores a run...then hits a homer? Arroyo has competition.

allan said...

Last Red Sox HR by a pticher: September 26, 1972, Marty Pattin, vs. Brewers. Sox lost 6-4 at Fenway.

allan said...

tito with the late hook on the starter, yet again. christ.

thatdietcokegirl said...

i think tito is a bit of a weener sometimes when it comes to pulling people. he needs to be more dominant.

allan said...

good to win the first two with lenny going tomorrow (and flo out of the lineup).

then it's another 3-game war with the mfy. monday is the first time i'll see them battle it out this season.

Anonymous said...

Random thoughts on our first two games in Philly and yesterday's steel cage match at at the Reinsdorf Rod & Gun Club.

Watching Ortiz capably handle the hot smash to 1st starting off Friday night's game (juxtaposed to purported defensive replacement, Snow, and his attempted kick save last night in the 8th), I continue to wonder why the club hasn't elected to send the big guy to winter ball with his mitt.

Despite his self deprecating comments to the contrary, Ortiz seems to be comfortable making all the plays around the bag (just ask Suppan), and would probably post a better fielding percentage than Giambi even if he wore his glove on that platinum rope he wears around his neck.

The fact that the NYY bloc of the sporting press used this very issue as the sole plank in last year's "A-Rod for MVP" campaign platform remains an injustice of enormous proportions, especially as Slappy continues to rewrite the record book for coming up huge in meaningless situations.

Lowell's return to form and Youk's emergence as a highly capable first baseman are two of the better stories at this point in the young season. Whether or not we can expect Snow in the extended forecast, I hope we see Ortiz heading to Maracaibo next winter with a suitcase whose exterior and interior are of exquisite leather.

Secondly, is there any prospect more terrifying than having Julian Tavarez on the mound in late September with the season on the line? Whoever it was who bestowed Steve Lyons with the Psycho handle never had the chance to see this guy at work.

While you have to love the movement on his heater as it comes back over the outside corner on right handers, you watch him twitch and just wonder when another Chernoble moment is going to strike.....

As for CHI vs. CHI, what the hell was Michael Barrett thinking? He made a clean block of the plate, and A.J.P. made an equally clean block of Barrett, one that would have made Damian Woody proud.

As Barrett was quoted after the game, you can understand why The Tools of Ignorance fit him so we: "I don't know how to say it. I mean, when you hit another grown man, it's never right, you know".

Prediction - bracelets soon to be found on sale outside Jacobs Field:

WWRFD? TBTSTFU!

Translation - What Would Ray Fosse Do? Tell Barrett to Shut The Fuck Up!

s1c said...

Well, look at it this way, at least Tito doesn't wait until the game is tied like Grady did or like Randolph doesn't wait until the closer has imploded like the met yankee game yesterday. Thats at least 3 games this year where an opposing team has had a big lead late in the game vs the Yanks only to have them implode. Sox should be 2 1/2 up not 1 1/2.